Position: I think one of the best things going for me is that I can play nearly everywhere despite my height (6’4”). I was raised playing streetball with whomever I could find, so playing every spot on the field was how I was brought up. However more often than not you can find me in a corner, the dorito side, or occasionally breaking up the center.

How long you have been playing: Going on about 8 years strong now…wow that went fast.

Favorite field: Vintage Paintball Park. Best fields, best people to play against, and just an overall great atmosphere to be in.

How did you first become interested in the sport: I started out like most people playing with a few of my friends from school in the woods, after about three outings we thought we we’re pretty slick and entered a 3man league at a local field. We got beat down for about 6 weeks without winning a game, but it was the most fun thing I’ve ever done. To this day I remember the feeling I had after I played my first point, it was amazing and I’ll never forget it.

Why do you play: In all honesty I think I play more for the things that happen outside the net rather than the ones inside. Paintball has taught me a lot about life, and more importantly about myself. Without it I would’ve never had the friends I have, traveled the places I’ve been, or tasted the food I’ve eaten. It’s given me about 90% of the amazing memories I have in my life and I’m ever grateful. Outside of the shenanigans that I manage to get into while not playing, I love the game, plain and simple. Paintball is very tenacious in that no two games are ever the same, and nobody has it exactly figured out; too much is left to chance, or luck as some call it. I’ve never played a sport where winning feels this good and loosing feels that awful. The feeling you get when you pull a sick move or win a big point for your team puts you on top of the world, and I guess you could say chasing that feeling every weekend is why I play.

Equipment: Dye gear has always been my favorite, I had the privilege of being sponsored by them for two full seasons on Shock-Kidz and Velocity Wrecking Crew and I’ve been partial ever since. Outside of that I wear Sly goggles and a Sly pack.

Notable wins or tournaments: I have yet to win a national event actually, the closest I ever came was Chicago 09’ when I took 2nd in D2 xball with Velocity Wrecking Crew. Outside of that I’d say the best experience I’ve had were the two times I’ve played on pro Sunday, (D.C. 2010 & 11). There’s really no comparison, biggest stage, big lights, big pressure. It’s the greatest place to be on the field.

Things you are looking forward to in the upcoming year: Enjoying the ride.

Favorite paintball memory: World Cup 2008 with Shock Kidz. We had just beat Palm Beach Vipers to advance into the final 4 in the pouring rain, we had a huddle right after the match and with all my best friends around me soaking wet I thought to myself “where else would I rather be right now?”. I thought without a doubt in my mind we were going to win that tournament, perfect team, perfect gear, perfect conditions. In my eyes, that team was perfect, however we lost our next match in overtime and placed 3rd at the tournament. I still look back at pictures from that event and think how did we not pull it off…

Biggest piece of advice: Above all just have fun, once you stop having fun you might as well pack up and leave. There’s no money here, no endorsements, no boosters. The only thing you are going to get out of this simple game is a smile on your face at the end of the day, if it’s not going to give you that find a different hobby.

Favorite pro team or player: Aaron Tholey has taught me pretty much everything I know since I was a young pup (about 15 I think), he’s one of my best friends and still somebody I look up to in the sport. My favorite team of all time will forever be the Oakland Assassins, those guys were hard; they put it on people and looked mean while doing it. It’s too bad that only one or two of them even play anymore.

Fun fact: When it comes down to it I really am a big paintball nerd, I rarely get to actually chat with somebody that knows what they’re talking about when it comes to guns or anything else that relates to the sport, so when that happens I usually go off and get really excited.

Our first match of the day on Friday was against Temple. 7 of us flew down, and the rest made the 18+ hour drive from Indiana to Florida along with the gear bags. Thank you very much to the Leamers whose son played on the team a number of years ago, yet remain a strong supporter of the team. Our first match was slotted for 8am on Friday. Shockingly our team was not only on time, but early and ready to play. However, the field was working on normal “paintball time” and we began after 10am.

In comparison to World Cup, we had a varied set of guys play at Nationals. The roster is below:

Interestingly, RJ, Nick and Rob were part of the 2009 team that won Nationals. Coming out of “retirement” with the Purdue team, they decided to play together for one last time, as all 3 are graduating this spring (RJ and Rob from grad school and Nick from undergrad.) Additionally, Alex Bilse was also part of the 2009 Nationals team. They, along with Dan Norcross played as the primary line 1. Purdue’s strategy for the competition was not to underestimate any team we played for the day. Line 1 and 2 interchangeably played points to keep energy up and time to pod. We came out of the gate a bit slow with getting used to the field. I don’t think it helped that there was a long time of sitting around, but ready to play. However, Purdue after the first 5 minutes really hit their stride coming from behind. The final score was 6-5.

So over spring break I took my boyfriend to play paintball in Georgia. (The first time we had played together, but I believe he had played twice before.) We had a great time. There were some xball players there, however their home field team was at the Galveston PSP event. The staff was insanely nice and they even have “play 6 times, get the 7th free.” We played a mix of hyperball and scenario because there were the more beginner players playing those fields. It was more about having fun with my bf than trying to be super competitive. Just want to give a shout out to the field for a great time. If you’re in Georgia stop on by: http://www.classic-paintball.com/

Also, Purdue went to NCPA Nationals this past weekend in Lakeland, Florida. I will do a couple posts regarding Nationals. Here is a little preview. Also coming up is the 2nd annual MBA game at Paintball Barn next Monday! Want to see my pictures from Nationals before I post them here? Head over to my Twitter: https://twitter.com/howensuga

Favorite field:The Paintball Barn, because the owner Micah has taken such amazing care of us throughout the years and it’s close to campus.

How did you first become interested in the sport: I played for the first time at my friend’s 12th birthday party. We went to a woodsball field in Gurnee, IL called Paintball Blitz. Both of us got hooked and quickly bought our own guns, but I stuck with it throughout high school and eventually started playing PSP events. The rush you get at a national event is incredible.

Why do you play: I’ve played hockey, football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and just about every other mainstream sport out there. Nothing comes close to the intensity of tournament paintball and no sport has as strong an emphasis on both individual skills and teamwork as paintball does.

Notable wins or tournaments: My team finished in the top 4 at the 2010 PSP Chicago Open.

Things you are looking forward to in the upcoming year: PSP World Cup and NCPA Nationals. Oh, and getting my girlfriend to play. I’m sure she’d love to shoot me after all the phone calls I get about paintball whenever she comes over.

Favorite paintball memory: Making it to the finals at the 2010 PSP Chicago Open playing with my friends. We had a great time, plenty of hilarious bloopers throughout prelims, and the 6 inches of mud on every field made for an interesting playing experience to say the least.

Biggest piece of advice:I’ve always found that no matter how thoroughly you plan out an event in paintball, things will never go as expected. If I were to give one piece of advice to a new player, it would be to treat every event as a learning experience and make the most out of it even if things don’t go your way. There’s always another tournament and there’s always another adventure to be had. There’s no reason to hold grudges or get yourself worked up about that one bad call. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter.

Favorite pro team or player: My favorite pro team is San Diego Dynasty. I’ve been watching them since the day I started playing and I get to staff for them at PSP events. I learn so much from them and can apply many of the things they do to my own playing skills or my team. My favorite player on Dynasty is Alex “Mouse” Goldman, who is a great snake player and even walked the fields with my Purdue teammates at the most recent PSP event just to give them pointers and suggestions. He’s a stand up guy.

Big plans for the Purdue Team: When I began to plan out the 2011-12 season, I had four specific goals in mind. I want to take podium at any local event we play, win the college world cup, dramatically expand our recreational player base, and of course, win the national championship.

Planned Tournaments: Our two largest events of the year will be PSP World Cup and NCPA National Championships. We also plan on competing in the MWXL and Plex series.

If someone is interested in playing for Purdue, what are the qualifications/process for making the team? The only qualification to make the team is that you’re a full time Purdue student. The process for making the team involves trying out, making the cut, and being a good fit in our team; our family. We hold tryouts in September every year and usually take ~15 players for xball and the rest are invited to play 5-man until they’re ready for xball. Every player, including past Purdue players, must try out every year. For students that transfer mid-year or miss tryouts, we’d have to handle that on a case by case basis.

Fun fact: Heather Owens is an awesome photographer, but I can’t say the same for her hugs. (My response to that Jake: You guys are all like 12 years old. Don’t want to walk that fine line of sexual harassment of a minor. I’ll step it up next time.)

Other comments: Thank you for coming out to all our events Heather! (This year I’m actually going to play… and of course keep photographing and blogging!)